Semaphore



(No Model.)

I. R AND OLPH.

SEMAPHORE Patented Feb. 11,1890.

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NITED STATES PATENT *OFFICE. V

ISHAM RANDOLPH, OF ENGLEWVOOD, ILLINOIS.

SEMAPHORE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 421,085, dated February 11, 1890.

Applicatlon filed May 25, 1889. Serial No. 312,086. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that ISHAM RANDOLPH, a citizen of the United States, residing at Englewood, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented a new and useful Improvement in semaphores, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to improvements in the class of semaphores employed for railroad signaling purposes, and to the kind involving a post having pivot-ally supported upon ita vertically-swinging arm movable to a horizontal'position for danger and capable of being lowered therefrom to safety.

Various of the details constituting features of my improvement may be employed to advantage when applied to a home semaphore only, though I intend them also for use where a distant semaphore is connected with it to be'operated by the home semaphore, while other details are designed for use only where a distant semaphore is so connected with a home semaphore.

Among the more important objects of my improvement are the following: To provide a new construction of compensator for use solely as such only where employed for the home semaphore, and serving the further purpose, when used on both a home and a dis tant semaphore, connected for their co-operation, to effect the movement of the former previous to the latter to safety, and of the I latter previous to the former to danger, and

to provide effectively operating means for locking the home semaphore at danger and to prevent its being adjusted to safety until the switch to which the semaphore relates has been set for themain track, and to prevent the switch from being opened until the semaphore has been moved to danger.

*In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is aview in broken elevation of ahome semaphore provided with my improvements. Fig. 2 is a diagram representing a home and a distant semaphore connected together and indicating the location'and manner of operation of the locking device. Figs. 3 and 4. are sections taken, respectively, on the lines 3 3 and 4 4 of Fig. 1, viewed in the direction of the ar rows and enlarged. Figs. 5 and 6 are views in elevation of diiferent details. Fig. 7 is a broken view, in side elevatiomof a semaphore lamp; Fig. 8, a broken sectional plan View of the semaphore shown in Fig. 1, but enlarged overthe latter, the sectionbeing taken through lamp on the line 8 8 of the first figure; Fig.

9, a section taken on the line 9 of Fig. 1, en-

larged, and Viewed in the direction of the arrow; and Fig. 10, a broken plan View of the switch locking bar shown in Fig. 9.

B, supporting the pivotal vertically-swinging arm 0 (which may be weighted near its rear A is the home semaphore involving a post end, as shown, to counterbalance it) and mechanism through which to produce the movements of the arm. The semaphore-arm is supported at one side of the post B, and at the opposite side I provide a lens D, which should also be pivotally supported on the post and on the pivot of the arm 0.

Between the lens D and arm 0 is the sig r al-lamp E, of a usual construction of. such lamps, except'that it is provided on its rear side, at which it is suspended on the post, with an oil-reservoir r, communicating with the burner r, (see Fig. 8,) and has a glass or transparent bottom q, Fig. 7, and a lens 10,

extending beyond the front side or side nearest the track, at an angle toward the semaphore-arm to throw light directly on the latter, whereby, with the transparent bottom permitting the light to shine below the lamp,

the post and arm are rendered refulgent in a degree tending the more to attract notice to it.

i F is a triangularbracket having a pivotpin m near its vertex and carrying in suitable bearings, lateral of its diverging extremities, flanged antifriction rollers 0. The bracket F is secured to the post B in the position illustrated, (being preferably let into the post along its diverging arms,) and on its pivot-pin 00 it supports an arm G, shorter than the diverging arms of the bracket and carrying at its free end an anti-friction roller G like the rollers o, and the shaftn of which extends beyond the roller toward the bracket and has I one end a weight I, (which may involve a poculiar construction, as hereinafter described,)

and being connected at its opposite extremity with the upper end of a bar K, movable between the rollers 0 0, at one of its lateral edges (embraced by the roller-flanges) and the roller G at its opposite edge, (also embraced by the flanges of that roller,) where it is provided with a recess 7., serving a purpose hereinafter explained. Toward the lower end of the bar K, from which it is connected by a rope Z, cable, or chain with the operating-lever L,as indicated in the diagrammatic View presented in Fig. 2, it is provided with a longitudinal slot 1 through which extends a bearing h, fastened to the post B and supporting washers g, which thus bear against the outer side of the bar K and hold it in its reciprocating movements against the post.

The operation of the mechanism thus far described is as follows: As illustrated, the arm 0 is in its normal or danger position.

To move it to safety, the lever L is actuated to pull downward on the bar K through the medium of the rope Z, (and against the resistance of theweight I, which returns the arm to danger when the lever L is released.) The notch on the bar K engaging the roller Gturns the latter downward through the arc of a circle, and therebyfpulls down the semaphore-arm, owing to the connection of the latter with the shaft of the roller G, through the medium of the link H. hen the bar K has been lowered so far as to bring the notch 7; sufficiently low to have passed the roller G, (owing to the movement of the latter through the arc of a circle,) further pulling on the rope Z will move downward the bar K without afiecting the arm C, since the bar will slide between the rollers o 0 and G, owing to the connection of the semaphorearm with the arm G, and not with the bar K. Thus since to effect movement of the arm 0 the notch 7t must move into a position to engage the roller G, whether the rope Z or the rope Z, or both, become lengthened or shortened in their use, the semaphore-arm will not thereby be affected, so that the roller G on its pivotal arm G acts as a compensator.

My improvement as thus far described is especially designed, however, for use with a distant semaphore A,l3ig. 2, constructed exactlylike the semaphore A as to its post, arm' C, and mechanism for actuating the arm, except as to the weight, which, like that on the home semaphore, may be of any ordinary construction, and except as to the bar connecting the weight with the lever L, which bar for the distant semaphore is illustrated in Fig. 6 and therein denoted as K, the difference between the bars K and K being that the latter has a lateral recess or notch Zr, longer than the recess or notch Z: in the former.

Vith the home semaphore connected with the distant semaphore the operation is as follows: The connection is made by causing the medium Z to extend (of course, as usual, over suitablylocated guide-pulleys, not shown) to the distant semaphore A as indicated in Fig. 2, at which it is connected with the lower end of the bar K thereon, whereby when the bar K is lowered in the manner described, the bar K will be simultaneously and correspondingly lowered. When the semaphorearm of the home device is in the danger position, at which it is illustrated, and the notch 7.; in the bar K in position to engage the roller G, all as described, the roller G on the bracket F of the distant semaphore A is at or near the center of the longer notch 70 of the bar K, so that the downward move ment of the bar K will not affect the signalarm of the distant semaphore until that of the home semaphore has been lowered to safety and the notch in the bar K has passed its roller G. Then the notch 76 will have engaged at its upper end with its roller G, and further drawing on the rope Z from the lever L will pull down farther both bars K K, the former, as described, without more affecting the home-signal arm, and the latter thereby pulling the semaphoresarm of the distant signal to safety. Obviously when the lever L is released to permit the weights I to raise the signal-arms of the two semaphores to danger, the arm of the distant semaphore will be first so raised by the access first into the notch 70 of the bar K of the adjacent roller G, after which the bar K will reach an elevated position, bringing its notch coincident with its roller G, and the continued rise of the bar K withthe said adjacent roller in its notch will cause the arm of the home semaphore tobe raised to danger. Thus, as will readily be seen,of the two semaphores the distant oneis caused first to show the danger-signal and the home first the safety-signal.

It is desirable to provide a lens D in the arm 0 to permit the operator on that side of the semaphore to see through it the light of the lamp E.

The weight I of the home semaphore preferably involves a construction which shall prevent throwing of the switch M, Fig. 2, till the semaphore is caused to display the danger-signal, and which shall prevent the indication by the semaphore of safety tillthe switch has been thrown to the corre sponding position.

N is a bar suspended at its upper end from the rope Z, and having shoulders f and e at different elevations from its lower end, the former aifording a seat for the weight (which may be formed in separately adjustable and removable sections, as shown) and the latter an offset. Directly below the bar N and so cured to the post B is a guide 0, carrying a flanged. anttfriction pulley (Z, and having a slot (Z opposite the pulley, between which and the slot (in perpendicular line with the weiglm carrying bar) the bar N moves. The guide 0 is also provided with a horizontal slot (Z' at a right angle to and opening laterally into the slot tZ to receive a bar 1, provided with alat eral notch o, and extending horizontally from the crank Q of the switch-operating spindle Q and at a right angle with relation to the switch-connecting bar B.

When the switch M is set for the side track, or the turning of the spindle Q forces the bar 1? forward sufficiently far to bring the notch c coincident with the shoulder e, thereby allowing the bar N to be raised to permit the semaphore to be moved to safety, the switch cannot then, owing to the notch cembracing the bar N, be set for the main track, or closed, until the semaphore has been moved to danger, thereby bringing the shoulder e coincident with or below the bottom of the notch c.

What I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is I 1. In a semaphore, the combination, with the post 3, pivotal signal-arm O, and operating-lever L, of an arm G, pivotally supported at one end and provided at its opposite end with an anti-friction roller G, a link I-I, connecting the arm 0 with the arm G, a reciprocating bar K, having a recess 70 and connected from one end with the operatinglever, and a Weight I, connected with the opposite end of the bar K, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

2. In a semaphore, the combination, with the post B, pivotal signal-arm C, and operating-lever L, of a bracket F, secured to the post and provided with antifriction rollers 0, an arm G, pivotally supported on the bracket and carrying at its free extremity an anti-friction roller G, a link H, connecting the arm 0 with the arm G, a reciprocating bar K, confined laterally on the post between the rollers 0 and G, and having a recess 70, and connected from its lower end with the operating-lever, and a weight I, connected with the bar K from its upper end by a rope Z, passing over a pulley m on the post, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

3. In combination, a home semaphore A and a distant semaphore A, each having a post B, a pivotal signal-arm C, an arm G, pivotally supported at one end and provided at its opposite end with an anti-friction roller G, and a link H, connecting the arm 0 with the arm G, a reciprocating bar K on thepost of the home semaphore, having a recess Zcand connected from one end with the operatinglever by a rope Z, and a weight I, connected with the opposite end of the bar K, a reciprocating bar K on the post of the distant anti-friction roller G, a link I-I, connecting the arm 0 with the arm G, a reciprocating bar K, confined on the post against the said bracket and having a recess 70, a rope Z, connecting the bar K from its lower end with the operating-lever, a weight I, connected with the opposite endof the said bar by a rope Z, passing over a pulley m and having a bar N extending beyond its lower end and provided with a shoulder e, a bracket 0, having a slot cZ, inwhich the bar Nis vertically movable and in which it is confined against lateral play, and a horizontal slot 6Z2, opening laterally into the slot cZ, and aswitch-operating spindle Q, having a horizontally-reciprocat ing notched bar P, connected with its crank Q and extending at or substantially at a right angle to the switch-connecting bar B into the slot 6Z2, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

ISHAM RANDOLPH.

In presence of- J. W. DYRENFORTH, M. J BoWLEs. 

